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February 8th, 2008


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China: Netizen Party announced 

a small portrait of this author John Kennedy · 23:00
lingua → es

From forcing the rescue of hundreds of brick kiln slave laborers last year and seeing it through long after local bodies gave up to being analytical piranhas when dealt obvious official lies, and numerous examples in between, it seems some netizens have realized their comparative advantage over local government authorities and this hubris now brings us the China Netizen Party. These are its founding bylaws:

中国网民党章程暨成立宣言

Bylaws and Founding Declaration of the China Netizen Party

　　

　　序言

Preface

　　一、中国网民党的性质和宗旨序言
　　二、中国网民党的四项基本原则
　　三、中国网民党的三大基本任务
　　四、中国网民党的党员登记、党部设立与党费党产
　　五、中国网民党党员的日常学习与工作
　　六、中国网民党党员的誓言

1. Preface to the Nature and Objectives of the China Netizen Party
2. The Four Basic Principles of the China Netizen Party
3. The Three Major Tasks of the China Netizen Party
4. Member Registration, Establishment of Party Chapters, and Party Fees and Assets of the China Netizen Party
5. Daily Study and Work for Members of the China Netizen Party
6. Oath for Members of the China Netizen Party

　　2007年是中国网民胜利的一年，“华南虎”、“欧阳坑”等欺骗中国人民和世界人民的事件都一一遭到中国网民的深刻揭批。这充分说明了在网络时代，愚民政策愚不了网民。中国网民从此站起来了！我们决意组建中国网民党，作为彻底抛弃盲信、盲从的象征，作为中国从此进入网络时代的标志，作为中国社会民意表达大变革的里程碑，我们站起来了。

2007 was a year of victory for Chinese netizens, as one-by-one they laid bare and denounced such incidents as the “South China Tiger” to “Ouyang's Crater” and other which deceived both the Chinese People and the world. This clearly illustrates that in the Internet Age, obscurantist policy no longer has its desired effect on The Netizen. The Chinese Netizens hereby rise up! We are determined to form the Chinese Netizen Party to serve not only as a symbol of the complete abandonment of fanaticism and blind assent, but also as a sign that China has entered the Internet Age and a revolutionary milestone in public opinion within Chinese society, that we have now risen.

　　一、中国网民党的性质和宗旨：

1. Preface to the Nature and Objectives of the China Netizen Party:

　　1、中国网民党似党而非党
　　2、中国网民党只有人性没有“党性”
　　3、中国网民党只有团结互爱没有阶级斗争
　　4、中国网民党只有合法经营没有巧取豪夺
　　5、中国网民党只有正义与良知没有暴力加欺骗
　　6、中国网民党誓与一切欺骗、伪造、撰改为敌
　　7、中国网民党誓与一切删贴、锁贴等冷热暴力为仇
　　8、中国网民党必须坚持人民的领导，坚持“只要人民怀疑，我们就去调查”的重要原则

1. The China Netizen Party both is and isn't a Party;
2. The China Netizen Party bears the characteristics of humanity only and a political party not at all;
3. The China Netizen Party is of unity and mutual love only and class struggle not at all;
4. The China Netizen Party is of lawful operations only and forced or sly profiteering not at all;
5. The China Netizen Party is of justice and conscience only and violence and deceit not at all;
6. The China Netizen Party swears to take all deceit, forgery and revisionism as its enemy;
7. The China Netizen Party swears hatred at all deletion of posts, censorship and other such forms of violence;
8. The China Netizen Party will hold The People's leaders to the key principle of The People of “where there's doubt, we'll investigate”.

　　二、中国网民党的四项基本原则：

2. The Four Basic Principles of the China Netizen Party:

　　1、公开 2、理性 3、非暴力 4、统一行动

1. Open;
2. Rational;
3. Non-violent;
4. Unified in action;

　　三、中国网民党的三大基本任务：

3. The Three Major Tasks of the China Netizen Party:

　　1、揭露一切欺骗与虚伪行为，还世间以朗朗乾坤；
　　2、扫平一切冷热暴力，还天下以大同社会；
　　3、宣传“全民参与、齐说真话”的思想，最终促成还权于民。

1. Expose all deceitful and hypocritical behavior, restore balance in the world;
2. Put down violence in all its forms, restore perfect harmony to society;
3. Call for an ideology of “all-citizen involvement, speak the truth in unison”, with the ultimate goal of restoring power to the people.

　　四、中国网民党的党员登记、党部设立与党费党产：

4. Member Registration, Establishment of Party Chapters, and Party Fees and Assets of the China Netizen Party

　　1、凡认同中国网民党宗旨、基本原则与基本任务的全世界无论国籍、种族、性别、年龄的网民均可自行宣布为中国网民党成员，所有党员一律不予注册、登记
　　2、中国网民党各党部根据地域、爱好、行业、论坛等可自由组建，党部领袖内部民主选拔，所有党员均可自由同时加入多个党部
　　3、中国网民党无须交纳任何党费，亦无任何党产。

1. Regardless of nationality, race, gender or age, any netizen on earth who identifies with the objectives, basic principles and basic tasks of the Chinese Netizen Party may declare themselves members of the China Netizen Party, and all party members without exception are not to sign up or register in any fashion;
2. The China Netizen Party collects no party fees or assets.

　　五、中国网民党党员的日常学习与工作：

5. Daily Study and Work for Members of the China Netizen Party

　　1、学习、实践和宣传正义与良知是中国网民党最重要的工作
　　2、中国网民党所有党员都要深刻认识到惟有正义与良知才能拯救中国。而朗朗乾坤、大同社会的最终确立，取决于我们今日的努力
　　3、中国网民党的目的就是揭批谎言，以遍布中国的各种网络社区、论坛、网站为战斗阵地。网络是我们的武器，网民是我们的军队！

1. Study, practice and speak out in the two main areas of China Netizen Party work, justice and conscience;
2. All members of the China Netizen Party must profoundly understand that righteousness and conscience alone can save China. And the ultimate establishment of an ideal society for all depends on our efforts today.
3. The objective of the China Netizen Party is to expose and denounce lies, with all internet communities, forums and websites in China as our battle positions. Networks are our weapons, netizens are our troops!

　　六、中国网民党党员的誓言

6. Oath for Members of the China Netizen Party

　　中国网民党的历史使命的实现取决于全体党员的共同奋斗！荣辱与共、同舟共济，让我们紧紧团结在广大人民的周围，为正义而战！为良知而战！正义万岁！良知万岁！！中国网民万万岁！！！

　　Realization of the China Netizen Party's historical mission depends upon the joint efforts of all party members! Together through the good and bad, joined in times of trouble, let us firmly unite the majority of the people and fight for justice! And for conscience! Long live Justice! Long live Conscience! Long live The Chinese Netizen!

　　中国网民党中央委员会、
　　中国网民党代理主席 张不为
　　二00八年二月四日

China Netizen Party Central Committee
China Netizen Party Acting Chairman, Zhang Buwei
February 4, 2008

　　中国网民党联系办法：
　　skype：zhangbuwei1989 gmail：zhangbuwei1989@gmail.com

China Netizen Party means of contact:
Skype: zhangbuwei1989
Gmail: zhangbuwei1989@gmail.com

The birth of the CNP was announced this month by Guo Quan, the former Nanjing University professor now preparing to sue both Yahoo! and Google after recently discovering he'd become victim of the online equivalent of being disappeared, with his name filtered out of search results on the two search engines' Chinese sites. His chances of really being disappeared look higher now too after Guo wrote an open letter late last year calling for increased democracy and just last month started his own political party to that effect, the New People's Party, believed to be the reason he lost his teaching job.

Fittingly, one of the few places mention of the CNP can now be found within China is in the midst [zh] of discussions of the offline rescue missions organized spontaneously by netizens this past week for those trapped by the snow, where readers can be seen networking quickly, constantly updating and redirecting efforts accordingly, cooperating with police who alone weren't able to keep up.

Guo, a historian known for his work on the Nanjing Massacre as well as a harsh anti-Japanese stance in general, while with those credentials alone is fit to represent a large portion of China's 200,000,000 netizen population, it was probably a smarter move to stick with his political party and name ‘Zhang Buwei' as the China Netizen Party's acting chairman. Guo, it should be mentioned, has done scandal-busting work of his own. Zhang himself has not yet written publicly about the CNP, but was willing to answer a few text-based questions:

Q 网民党现在有网站，或者博客吗？

Does the China Netizen Party have a website or blog?

A 没有

No

Q 大概什么时候可以见一个？

When can we see one?

A 暂时没这个计划 我们主要通过Email和skype联系 主要在国内论坛上活动

There is no plan for one at present. We'll mainly be keeping contact through e-mail and Skype. Most of our activity will be on mainland forums.

Q 微博客也没有？比如‘饭否’或Twitter. 去年网志年会微博客是一个关键话题

Not even a microblog, like Fanfou or Twitter? This was a key topic at last year's Chinese Blogger Conference.

A 这个我不懂

Not sure about that.

Q 在中国立党不安全，你和郭泉和别的网民党党员将面对的危险多大？

It's not safe to go establishing parties in China; how likely is it that this will prove dangerous for you, Guo Quan and other members?

A 我和郭随时可能被中共打压 我们都已经做好了坐牢的准备 网民党成员的压力要小些 因为网民党的章程没有把自己定义成真正的政党性质

The CCP might take Guo or me down at any time. We're already well-prepared that we might go to jail. Pressure on members of the China Netizen Party will be slightly less, because the bylaws of the China Netizen Party don't define us a proper political party.

Q 网民是怎么样可以说明自己的网民党成员或者党支持者的身份？比如在自己的博客上放广告，牌子等。现在在国内几乎找不到关于网民党的资料

How do you plan to confirm membership, or how are members supposed to identify themselves as supporters or members? Badges for their blogs, for example. There's little information on the China Netizen Party to be found online in China right now.

A 刚才上面说了，我党并不属于真正意义上的政党，所以我党成员并不需要随时都公开自己的身边
此其一
其二
我党成员内部有一定的分工 ，大家接到相关工作安排后，便前往各个论坛开展工作，所以也不需要公开自己的身份

Like I just said, the Party isn't a proper political party, so members don't need to always need to identify themselves publicly. That's one; second is that all work is divided internally among party members, and when they receive their respective work assignments, they just go and carry out that work on the bbs forums, so they don't need to disclose their identities.

Q 你党会继续做像胡佳那种主动博客工作吗
另外，你对胡佳他这种事业有什么看法？

Will your party carry on the kind of blogging work Hu Jia was doing? And, what is your thought on the kind of work Hu Jia did?

A 我所在的新民党的工作跟胡佳的工作性质是一样的
我对他和他的事业都充满崇敬之情

The nature of of the work of my current party, the New People's Party, is identical to the work Hu Jia did. I have nothing but admiration for him and his work.

Q 我刚在博讯看了一位叫安均写了一篇因为网民党‘不要阶级斗争’而拒绝参与；你觉得胡佳这种所谓”一个人的人权组织“在中国有多大的发展空间？

I just read a piece on Boxun from an An Jun, who wrote that s/he rejects the China Netizen Party because it itself “rejects class struggle”; how space for growth do you think there is in China for the kind of “one-man human rights organization” work that Hu Jia was doing?

A 空间非常大 因为维权有很多领域，比如：下岗职工、失地农民等等 同时维权还是全国性质的，有地域之分 所以说维权（包括其他民运）工作是绝对不存在参与的人或组织过多 这样的现象，恰恰相反，在如今的中共面前，这样的人或组织越多越好，我们也可以提倡人海战术，把中共淹没在我们的吐沫之下是完全可能的

There's an extremely large space, because there are so many fields in which rights need to be defended; like laid-off workers, peasants who've lost their land, etc. At the same time, upholding rights is something countrywide, with regional elements. This is why there exists absolutely no cases of there being too many people or groups taking part in the rights movement's (and other democratic movements') work. Precisely on the contrary, in the face of the CCP at present, the more these kinds of people and groups, the better. We could even advocate for human wave tactics and drown the CCP in a flood of our spit, it's completely possible.

Q 按我的理解，郭泉在学者的事业中是经常待着一个反日立场；你觉得这一点会影响国内城内的（即，大部分）网民决定参与还是不参与网民党吗

According to my standing, in his academic career Guo Quan frequently took an anti-Japan stance, do you think this will affect mainland urban (ie. most) netizens' decision to get involved in the China Netizen Party?

A 网民党的主要宗旨是在国内网络揭批虚假，跟是否反日无关，我们的党员在加入的时候也从来没有提出过这样的问题

The main aim of the China Netizen Party is to expose and denounce the untrue, and any opposition to anti-Japanese sentiment is irrelevant; our party members haven't raised this this kind of question as they joined up.

Q 然后最后一个问题是，网民党对网络中立性运动和知识共享组织有什么立场？

And the last questions, what is the China Netizen Party's stance on net neutrality and Creative Commons?

A 网民党对网络中立性运动和知识共享组织是非常赞许和支持的，也是网民党宗旨和目标函盖内容之一

The China Netizen Party strongly applauds and supports internet neutrality and Creative Commons, both key tenets and goals of the China Netizen Party.

Q 现在没有博客或网站，以后有兴趣的人应该到哪里获得最近消息？

With no blog or website at present, where should those interested go for the latest information in the future?

A 我党对外公告就会及时通报各个媒体

The party will circulate announcements through various media.

Released along with the party's bylaws is a letter from Guo:

郭泉：就中国网民党的成立谈中国网民的网络革命

Guo Quan: Upon the establishment of the China Netizen Party, a word on the Chinese netizens' internet revolution

今天（2008年2月4日），中国新民党长沙党部代理主席张不为先生接受中国新民党中央党部的指令，组建了中国网民党，并出任中网党代理主席，领衔负责中国新民党的网络革命指导工作。张先生31岁，学生时代即立志推进中国民主化进程，几年来热心民主事业，关注维权斗争，曾在去年一年里遭遇中共迫害致使损失财产五万之巨。

Today (Feb. 4, 2008), Acting Chairman of the China New People's Party, Changsha Chapter, Mr. Zhang Buwei received instructions from the Chinese New People's Party Central Committee to form the China Netizen Party, serve as its first acting Chairman, and take the lead in directing the work of the China Netizen Party's internet revolution. Mr. Zhang is 31 years old, and during his student days sought to advance the process of democratization in China, fighting in recent years for the democratic cause and in raising awareness of civil rights. Last year he suffered persecution from the CCP leading to asset losses already of a sum of 50,000 RMB.

2007年一年，中国网民在找真相、说真话的行动中，表现突出，获得巨大成功，赢得了广大中国人民的尊敬和爱戴。现举三个杰出的战例：

第一例：2007年6月5日，无锡市市长书记在湖滨饭店开会研究蓝藻问题，表示“其实我们这几天在水厂里已经喝自来水烧的开水了，”并当着记者的面喝下 “自来水”。其间还专门让另一领导监督烧水，使用透明杯以示“真实”。事后网友查出该饭店使用德国SBOK(世保康)家庭厨房净水系统。原来领导喝的此 “自来水”非百姓喝的彼“自来水”。

Over the year of 2007, Chinese netizens succeeded outstandingly as they acted to seek out and speak the truth, winning widespread respect and esteem from the Chinese people.

Guo's letter goes on to list three examples, the first being when in June city leaders in Wuxi, Jiangsu, whose main water supply is algae-infested Tai Lake, held a press conference demonstrating the tap water to be drinkable, two claims that Guo says were put to rest by one netizen who did some simple fact-checking and discovered that the “real” water the city leaders were photographed drinking came out from the restaurant faucet filtered first by a German water purification system. The second example is Chang'e, who went up, disappeared, reappeared, and only sent back one photograph, which, as with Guo's third and most relevant example, the ‘South China Tiger', netizens quickly proved had been manipulated, despite several very public official protestations to the contrary. In the Tiger case, in case you missed it, the lies went much further and dominated online discussion for months. The general conclusion it seemed was that all official public statements are now up for the most scientific of scrutiny and that no similar future lies will go unpunished, adding at the same time to an already-weakened sense of faith in the government.

更多的例子我也不多举了，我相信2008年将是中国网民党创造辉煌战绩的一年。中国根本没有真正的新闻，只有宣传；中国的“新闻”里根本没有真相，只有谎言。这正是中国网民党大展鸿图的时刻。

我想2008年，除了揭批谎言外，中国网民党还可以做的事情很多。

中国网民党可以积极调查中共不愿意公布的事件真相，例如湖南湘西自治州凤凰县凤大公路堤溪段的凤凰大桥坍塌，所有新闻里根本没有最基本的伤亡人数、没有事件的基本资料、没有设计单位的名称、没有施工单位的名称，读者最迫切想知道的新闻要件全不出现。

I won't list all the other examples here, but I believe that 2008 stands to be a year of brilliant exploits for the China Netizen Party. China has no real news, it only has propaganda; China's “news” bears no truth, it contains only lies. Now is the time for the China Netizen Party to unleash its master plan.

I think that in 2008, aside from exposing and denouncing lies, there are many other things the China Netizen Party could also do.

The China Netizen Party could actively investigate the truth behind incidents the CCP wishes not to disclose, the collapsed bridge in Fenghuang, Hunan, for example, where not only were there no basic body counts in the news, but also no basic information about the incident; from the architect's name to the construction company's name, the essential news readers wanted most urgently to know did not appear.

[…]

类似这样的事情，中国网民党应该做的事情是，积极地有组织地调查死难者的人数、姓名、年龄、性别，发布事件真相，让中国人民看到在中共新闻里看不到的事实真相。

2008年新年伊始，一场大雪让中国南方陷入皑皑冰雪中，到底冻死多少人、到底饿死多少人，他们死在哪里？他们叫什么？他们是男是女？他们曾经以何为生？最近又传出广州火车站有滞留旅客被践踏而死，那么他叫什么，他家在哪里？中国网民党应该紧密团结起来，分工合作，发挥人民战争的优势，还历史一个真相，让每个最平凡的人在这个国度都能留下自己的姓名和事迹。

让善良不被埋没，让邪恶无处遁形。

让每个正直的中国人的呐喊都能传遍全世界，让一切希望中国民主强大的人们都能感受到中国人民对民主的渴望追求和浴血奋战。

已经开始的2008年，是网络战争的一年。
这一年里，网络是我们的武器，网民是我们的军队！
最后，我衷心祝愿我们伟大的国家早日实现民主，人民安居乐业，国家民主强大！

With incidents like this, what the China Netizen Party ought to do is to go and actively investigate the numbers of dead, their names, their ages, their genders, and release the truth of the incident, letting the Chinese people see what they can't in the CCP news.

As the new year of 2008 began, the south of China was buried under heavy ice and snow, but how many people froze to death? How many starved to death? Where did they die? What were their names? Where they men or women? What did they once do for a living? Recently there's been news from Guangzhou that one of the stranded travelers was trampled to death. Well, what was his name? The China Netizen Party ought to stay closely united, so labor can be divided, to unleash the advantage of a people's battle, to restore truth to history, and allow for every common person in this nation to at least leave behind their own names and deeds.

Let not goodness be buried over, and leave evil with nowhere left to hide.

Let every upright Chinese person shout out across the world, and let all those who hope for a strong, democratic China see the bloody battle the Chinese people are fighting in their desire for and pursuit of democracy.

2008, which has already begun, will be a year of internet warfare.

This year, the internet will be our weapon, and the the netizens our troops!

Finally, it is my heartfelt wish that our great nation will see democracy realized soon, allowing our people to live happily and our democratic country to grow strong!

With the CNP communicating over private networks and routine net censorship presumably taking care of the rest, there's been almost no discussion online on mainland websites of this new party; overseas anti-CCP website Boxun featured one short piece from writer An Jun:

安均/写给草民的网民党:
1/你们写道不要阶级斗争.很好!建议取消阶级斗争!
2/你们写道只有人性没有党性,很好!建议反对党性与反对兽性并举!
3/你们没有写:是否要建工青妇?请不要搞一党独抓,把自己搞成独裁党!
4/你们没有写:是否要把国家的新闻媒体变成你们的喉舌/缸门?建议废除”国家媒体党私有化”!彻底取消党的缸门!
5/按理说,你们没有阶级斗争,就不会视天下人.视与自己观点不同的人群为敌对势力!与人类为敌吧?
以上,只是觉得你们写的怪好玩的,而给你们多写一/二句.千万别以为我是你们的同伙!

An Jun: To the grassroots netizen party:
1. You write that you don't want class struggle. That's great! I recommend that you eliminate class struggle!
2. You write that you will bear only the characteristics of humans and none that of a political party, that's great! I recommend anti-party-ness and anti-brutality alike!
3. You didn't write on whether you will establish unions and associations for youth and women. Please don't pull a one-party power-snatch and turn yourselves into the Dictator Party!
4. You didn't write on whether or not you intend to turn the country's news media into your own mouthpieces. I recommend the abolition of “Party-privatized state media”! Cancel outright all party mouthpieces!
5. Logically speaking, if you won't have class struggle, then won't be seeing everyone out there. See all groups with views different than yours as hostile forces then! Does that mean you'll have humans as your enemies though?

What I've written here is just a few words because I think you've written is weird and silly. Don't ever think that I'm on your side!

Fragments of related commentary could be found on the snow disaster thread on Tianya where the bylaws were first posted:

作者：红手心　回复日期：2008-2-5　8:50:07　
大陆网民站起来 决意组建中国网民党

Mainland netizens, stand up! Form the China Netizen Party with determination!

作者：NEAborigines　回复日期：2008-2-5　8:55:26　
民间活动政治化的结果就是夭折
我的话很难听啊
呵呵

Grassroots activities that get politicized end up getting aborted
What I'm saying doesn't sound very nice
Hehe

作者：磨刀inger　回复日期：2008-2-5　10:02:03　
虽然不好听,但实在~~

It may not sound nice, but it's realistic….

作者：akismylife　回复日期：2008-2-5　15:07:22
网络上有中国的良心和希望

The hope and conscience of China is on the internet.
12 comments · »»

Carnival: Videos from around the world This is a Video post

a small portrait of this author Juliana Rincón Parra · 22:22
lingua → pt · jp · es
sample image for this post

One way to know about a culture, is to see how they celebrate and why. Many countries share a common festival, the carnival, and each country gives a distinctive flavour to the celebration. Carnival usually takes place during the weeks prior to Lent in Catholic countries, and it's usually a time to revel, enjoy and feast before the 40 days of fasting and prayer in preparation of Easter begin. Citizen videos show us how carnival season was spent this year in Bolivia, French Guyana, Goa, India and Croatia.

Els mes joves motoritzats by JC i Núria
Els mes joves motoritzats
by JC i Núria

Probably the best known and most televised carnivals in the world are the Brazilian Carnaval, full of floats, samba and dancing, and Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Perhaps you've also heard about the carnivals in Venice, full of harlequins and masked revellers. Because there's plenty of information out there about them, I won't go beyond mentioning them here. Instead, through videos shot by common people like you, I'll show you the carnivals you may never have heard of.

From Bolivia, angelcaido666xuploaded several videos of the different events during this year's carnival in Oruro, a festival which was declared one of Mankind's Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by the UNESCOin 2001. This traditional Andean festival celebrating Pachamama and Tio Supay was turned into a Catholic representation by substituting mother earth for the Virgin Mary and Uncle Mountain into the Devil.

This video by angelcaido666x shows another side of the carnival, the band festival. On his blog [es], he also explains the songs they are playing and shares his experience at the festival.

From French Guiana, dailymotion user lesmezenesshows us the creole tradition of the touloulous, women who during the nights of carnival dress in elaborate dresses that completely cover them, including gloves, head-wrap and a face covering, so they become unrecognizable. During touloulous balls, men have to dance with any touloulou who asks them, and offer them drinks, which they take through a straw, thus remaining anonymous. You can see this video by following this link to lesmezenes DailyMotion site.

India's festival takes place in Goa and Kerala. From Goa specifically, youtube user JoeUKGoa posted several videos of the carnival at this former Portuguese colony.

In Croatia, people walked on the parades in spite of the rain. User intrepidCRO uploaded this video showing the “zvončari” or bell-ringers, which are the last ones in the procession and with their animal heads and large bells ringing are meant to scare away the winter.

1 comment · »»

Kenya: Bloggers rooting for peace and reconcilliation 

a small portrait of this author Rebecca Wanjiku · 18:04
lingua → es

After many days of hatred and acrimony, Kenyans are now rooting for peace and reconciliation. While blogs and other online forums had become new avenues of channelling tribal prejudices, bloggers are now using the same avenues to express the need for peace and justice.

The major highlight has been the starting of the website, I have No Tribe, where all traffic at Mashada forum is being directed to. Most blogs are now exploring peace initiatives and avenues.

Kikuyumoja gives his opinion about the site:

No matter how you feel on tribalism in Kenya, pls check out this nice new website and see what KENYANS ONLINE have to say about tribalism and nationalism.

Walking the walk explains why we should forgive but not forget the evils:

This morning I woke up and realized how much i hate ODM and now the tribes associated with it .As I took a showers the battle in my mind went from one way to the other .In the end I said a silent prayer that while I should hate Evil. I should not use broad swipes to classify people . Many in Kenya have died while many have gloated over those deaths some even justifying the killing of innocent Kikuyu Men Women and Children .How sad and how evil .Then as I sat down for breakfast my daily morning devotional had the following reading from Matthew 18:23-3523″Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. 25Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

More to life wonders whether he is a patriot:

For as long as patriotism is being what Kenyans are making news over these days, then I am proud to say that I for sure, I'm not a patriot.

If I had to choose where to be, I'd choose to be where I felt safe, was able to go about my own business, develop myself and make and work towards my own personal growth. I would never declare some space, that in actuality belongs to God, seemingly because I was born in it. No. If my neighbors proved to be capable of murder, based on our birth distributed differences, then I would not want to be anywhere near them. I would opt to leave. I have no desire to change people or no great hope in that people change that much either. Borders are man made. And were it not for modern day border policies, human nature would have had many people move around a whole lot more, as was common before formal rule took over the world.

And what does a patriot do?

I have potential to be a patriot. If I could choose citizenship. Citizenship based on character and nobility, not birth places, color, accents or tribes.

I could very easily belong to a citizens group of intelligent thinkers, fair and balanced persons, people who understand self responsibility and overall responsibility to the world around you. I could be a citizen of people who are more interested in humanity, the things that havent changed since before Christ, the real things of the human nature. And in this realm of citizenship, I could be a patriot.

But patriotism, lover of a country filled with kinsmen that march around with machetes against their own kind over subtle differences? No, not for me. Actually I want to be far removed. From all types of people that have the potential to sink this low. I want no association.

Kumekucha has published an article from the Citizens Pathway Group urging all kenyans to join in the quest for peace:

The Citizens’ Pathway Group (CPG) is a multi-ethnic and independent group of Kenyans united in our hopes and future aspirations for Kenya. As Kenyans, we view ourselves as a people that are able to earn and uphold our pride of place among nations as a sovereign and remarkable country of outstanding people enjoying a high quality of life.

Don’t our leaders live in this country? Do they watch television and read newspapers? Are they immune to the sight of mobs hacking their fellow citizens to death? Are they not moved by mothers and children being burnt to death in the places they went to seek refuge? Don’t they lose sleep at night over this calamity?
What is wrong with our leaders? Why do they continue to speak so insensitively and arrogantly? Is it because they remain unaffected by the chaos? Is it because their children don’t sleep hungry and are still able to go to school while those of many citizens are caught up in camps unsure where the next meal will come from or whether they will ever go to school again? Whether they will be alive tomorrow? Do our leaders believe that their status protects them from a further breakdown of law and order? Do they think that they are safe? Do they believe that their wealth or the money stashed away in some foreign country will save them? If this is what they believe, then they do not really understand the level that the current crisis could escalate to if not decisively dealt with.

Kumekucha who has been critical of the whole government process is optimistic about the negotiations:

The crux of the matter lies in the next tackling the POLITICAL DIMENSION to the crisis. And that will definitely mark the point of departures among the hitherto agreeing negotiators from both camps. The naked and unpleasant truth is that Kibaki is simply buying time and fooling the world with motions bereft of no meaningful movement politically or otherwise.
Let us be REAL for once and accept the bitter truth that nobody risks his/her reputation by sacrificing hundreds of lives only to STEAL an election and give the voters back their rights. More so if the thief holds the monopoly of force. Add this to the tribal cabal waiting in the wings for any trace of opportunity to strike Kenya dead so as to scavenge on the resulting carcass disguised as INDUSTRY.

5 comments · »»

Japan: Japanese bloggers on Super Tuesday 

a small portrait of this author Chris Salzberg · 13:19
lingua → es · jp · zht · zhs
sample image for this post

(This article is cross-posted at Voices without Votes.)

While Super Tuesday has come and gone in the U.S., conversations carry on in its wake among bloggers in the booming Japanese blogosphere. What do bloggers in the world's second largest economy think of the presidential elections of their major trading partner?

At the HAWK Blog [ja], one Japanese blogger reports on the Super Tuesday results direct from Washington D.C. [ja], commenting that:

大統領選が白熱すればするほど、現在の政権が実施している政策から国民の意識が遠のいていく感じがするので良いことばかりはないと思うが、自分の周りにいるアメリカ人に大統領選の話を聞くと、大抵自分なりの考えを持っていることがある意味羨ましい。

I have the feeling that the more heated the presidential elections become, the more citizens' awareness recedes from policy currently being implemented by the administration, so in this sense I don't think [the elections] are all a good thing. Listening to the American people around me talking about the presidential elections, the fact that everybody generally has their own views makes me kind of envious though.

制度や国民性の違いもあるだろうけど、母国の首相が交代する際、メディアによる盛り上がりは見せつつも、個人のレベルではどこか他人事のように捉える感が漂う日本の風潮は、大いに問題であり、時間をかけてでも意識を変革していく必要があると思う。

I guess there are also differences in terms of system and national character, but when there is a change of prime minister in my homeland [Japan], there is the great problem of the tendency in Japan to perceive things, at the level of the individual, as in some respects the other person's problem; while it may take time, I think there is a need to change this mindset.

At the “North Korea Problem” blog, a Republican Party supporter blogs [ja] about an article in Asahi newspaper [ja] claiming that Russia supports Democratic Party candidate Barack Obama:

　いずれにしても、ロシアの「ちゃちゃ入れ」によって民主党全体の足を引っ張り、その間隙を縫って共和党の有力候補者マケイン氏が大統領になってくれればいいと思う。中国べったりの民主党候補より、日本を盟友とする共和党の大統領の方が日本にとっていいに決っているのだ。ロシアよ、褒め殺しでも何でもいいから、大いに民主党を揺さぶってください。お願いします。

In any case, if the “intrusive entrance” of Russia drags down the whole Democratic Party and leaves a gap to fill for McCain, the major contender from the Republican Party, I think that would be great. Because there is no doubt that a president from the Republican Party, the sworn friend of Japan, is better for this country than a Democratic Party candidate that is close to China. Russia, please lavish mock praise on them or do anything, just please shake up the Democratic Party! I'm asking you, please.

Other bloggers were much more supportive of Obama, however. Blogger hot-hitoiki [ja], a human resources consultant, writes of Obama [ja]:

私がオバマ氏をちょっと応援している理由は、女性が大統領になるよりも、アフリカ系アメリカ人が大統領になる方がまだまだ道は険しいと思うから。。こんなチャンスはめったにないのでは？と思うのです。

The reason that I kind of support Obama is that I think the path to becoming a president for an African-American, more so than for a woman, is still very difficult… This kind of chance does not happen very often — that's what I think.

でも、ヒラリーの後ろを歩くビル・クリントン・・なんかこの２人の力関係が面白い。。

But then there's Bill Clinton, who walks behind Hillary … The power relationship between those two is somehow interesting…

Barack Obama in his own words (オバマ語録 in Japanese)
Barack Obama in his own words (オバマ語録 in Japanese)

Blogger Miepong [ja], meanwhile, a John Edwards supporter who lives in California, describes her experience [ja] following the primaries in the U.S. from a Japanese perspective, remarking that she sees the strongest support among young people for Obama and Republican Party candidate Ron Paul:

こちらでは車のステッカーで候補者への支持を表す人も多いのですが、やはり圧倒的に目立つのはオバマ支持です。ヒラリーを支持するステッカーは見たことがありません。あとはけっこうロン・ポール支持のステッカーも見ます。オバマもロン・ポールも若者層に人気があるという共通点があります。高い車に乗るような中年のミドルクラスはヒラリー支持だとしてもあんまりステッカーをべたべた貼ったりしないのでしょうね。

Over here there are many people who show their support for [presidential] candidates with stickers on their cars, but of course the ones that overwhelmingly stand out are stickers in support of Obama. I've never seen a sticker endorsing Hillary, but I have seen quite a few stickers in support of Ron Paul. Obama and Ron Paul have in common that they are very popular among the youth demographic. Even if they support Hillary, I suppose that the kind of middle-aged, middle-class people who drive expensive cars don't want them plastered with stickers.

私は「反原子力」を明確にし、大企業への反感を隠さないエドワーズを内心応援していたので、彼がなかなか浮かび上がれなかったのは残念でした。オバマには確かに魅力を感じるのですが、なんとなく老獪なワシントンのインサイダーたちに篭絡されてしまいそうな人の良さを感じるんですよねー。

I supported Edwards, who makes it clear that he is “anti-nuclear power” and does not hide his dislike of large corporations, and so I was very disappointed when he was not able to make it. I certainly understand the charm of Obama, but I also sense the accommodating nature of a person who could be completely enticed by crafty Washington insiders.

And what about Hillary? At My Daily Life [ja], mother of two and (according to her byline) politician's wife purebeauty [ja] blogs about her experience once meeting Hillary [ja] while living in the U.S.:

私はアメリカ在住時に、夫の通う大学院の教室で、ヒラリーを見た事があるので、（当時、ファーストレディーとして特別講演に来ていたのです。ヒラリーを見に大学の廊下で待ち伏せしていたら、大学の先生が教室に入れてくれたのです。）個人的にはヒラリーを応援しています。選挙権がある訳ではないので、大きな事は言えないのですが、「女性初のアメリカ大統領」の誕生に期待を抱きます。

When I was a U.S. resident, I had a chance to see Hillary once in the classroom of the graduate school that my husband was attending, and so personally I support Hillary. (At that time, she had come to give a special speech as the First Lady. When I was waiting to see her in the university corridor, university teachers let me come into a classroom.) I don't have the right to vote, so I can't really same much, but I hold hopes for the coming of the “first female American president.”
1 comment · »»

Iran: Reformist candidates barred from election 

a small portrait of this author Hamid Tehrani · 11:55

Iranian reformists have scaled down their expectations for parliamentary elections next month after the authorities disqualified most of their candidates including some MPs and the “Father of the Islamic Republic”, Ayatollah Khomeini's grandson. In Iran, candidates must first be approved before they can be elected by the public.

While many of these unapproved candidates have “served” the Islamic State for years, the authorities apparently now considered that their faith in Islam and belief in the regime, could not be proven. Former reformist president, Mohammad Khatami called such disqualifications a disaster. Free and fair elections have been a very rare event in Iranian history, and the country has not had one in last 25 years.

Several bloggers including reformist politicians share their ideas about elections.

Game is over before election

Mohmmad Ali Abtahi, former vice president and blogger, thinks that most of the parliament’s members are chosen before the election even takes off. The blogger writes:

… many believe there is no use in negotiations. I, of course, still believe that such literature is meaningless in the present government, which wishes to handle the issues without any disturbance. We have to select anonymous candidates who are not on the opposition list, and show that their plot to omit everyone except their group is defeated.

Akbar Montakhabi writes [Fa]:

Don’t be shocked. It had been clear that most reformist candidates would be disqualified. But we should participate in the election and vote for candidates who are against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s government.

A crisis coming soon

Ahmad Shirzad, former reformist MP and blogger says [Fa] it seems that people who are in power do not want to give their place in a democratic way to others. He adds that maybe such actions can work out in the short term, but predicts it will create a political crisis in the long term.

Omid Memarian says [Fa] it is interesting that many people who are disqualified, are devoted to the Islamic Republic but do not support Ahmadinejad’s policies. The blogger adds that a parliament that obeys the Iranian president and offers no creativity, is harmful for everyone.

The blogger has interviewed several people from different political factions in Iran and all have warned about the mass disqualification of candidates.

To vote or not to vote

Jomhour says [Fa] these disqualifications communicate a message from the authoritarian forces of the country: We are not changing. The blogger says that rhetoric saying everyone should participate in the elections under any circumstances is ridiculous and irrational.

A group of bloggers who call themselves “Yahoo 360 bloggers” wrote an open letter to the candidates of the reformist movement and asked them several questions about their objectives if elected: “What is your program to end discrimination between genders, to promote foreign investment, to support NGOs and to respect human rights,” are some key questions asked by these bloggers.

Dozens of bloggers have supported this initiative.

Pluralism, a dangerous game

Mehrr, a conservative blogger, says[Fa] reformists are a danger to society. The blogger adds:

Reformists want to promote human rights in this country. Human rights is a concept created by Imperialism for its own interests.

The blogger claims reformist journals support things that are in contradiction with Islamic values, such as pluralism.

3 comments · »»

Armenia: Bloggers Love Media - Media Love Blogs, But Who Loves More? 

a small portrait of this author Artur Papyan · 07:24
lingua → es

Armenian blogs have always been attentive towards the mass media although you can't really call it love because in part there's not much to like about the Armenian media these days. As to the recent courtship of bloggers by the media, Ahousekeeper [AM] has very rightly noted:

“Aravot” newspaper has discovered the Armenian Blogosphere. Talking to Uzogh [RU], and later searching through our journals, they have come to the conclusion that Armenian Bloggers “don't like political games and disdain homosexuals”. So now you know what questions journalists are most interested in, don't you?

And while some Bloggers appreciate the fact that the Armenian media has finally entered the 21st century, others are wondering [RU] why of all issues discussed in the Blogosphere the Aravot journalist was so interested only in the attitude of bloggers towards homosexuals? At any rate, despite the strange conclusions made by the journalist and the obviously “provocative” headline, it was a pretty good article, the Armenian News Blog [AM] concluded. It's also worth pointing out again that two media outlets, A1+ and Radio Hay, not only love bloggers more, but appreciated them earlier and also set up their own blogs.

The A1+ blog is located at http://a1plus.blogsome.com [AM], and the Radio Hay blog is at http://www.radiohay.am [AM].

Regarding the “reciprocal” love of bloggers for the Armenian media, here's what Ogostos' [RU] journal says about about ALM, a TV company widely regarded by the more educated young part of the population in Armenia as disgraceful TV channel which only be regarded as a joke.

The “ALM” channel went on air on metric frequency, which means - it was broadcast all over Armenia.

A most incredible TV channel was thus created in the world. Different from all others. Television, who's owner has the right to do everything. He can broadcast 24 hours of a party held at the “ALM” for New year if he likes. Or, if he likes, he can show a boy singing 24 hours of traditional Yezidi songs. He can talk politics 24 hours in the most awkward key… if he likes. And if he likes, he can announce to the whole wide world “darned Yezdis, I invite them here to sing, and in return, they don't vote for me! this means, they won't sing on my channel any more!”.

Another interesting discussion on the mass media in Armenia was started on Uzogh's [RU] blog. The blogger had placed a news video from the Haylur news program of Public TV of Armenia covering the recent pre-election meeting of Levon Ter-Petrossian with voters in the town of Talin, during which a man from the crowd was beaten up by the supporters of the presidential candidate in response to his yelling, “Talin people are not supporting you!”.

The blogger asked other Armenian Bloggers working in the sphere of media what they thought about the news item and whether it was ethical or not. In response, Mark Grigoryan [RU] came up with a detailed analysis pointing out that:

Generally speaking, the material could have been done much more professionally. I think, that the Public TV of Armenia, undoubtedly, should provide news coverage of much higher quality than that.

The other respondents to Uzogh's[RU] inquiry also noted, that the news item wasn't balanced enough.

To conclude, we can state that while the Armenian mass media are taking the first steps towards discovering the Armenian Blogosphere, Bloggers have been already been analyzing, assessing and criticizing the media for quite some time now. Looking at recent trends during the media coverage of the pre-election period in the country it looks like they'll have much more to dwell upon in the coming week or two as well.

The audio version of this article [AM] will be broadcast on Radio Hay FM 104.1 on Saturday, 11:00

 
icon for podpress  Armenian Blog Review: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download
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Peru: National Treasures - Pisco Sours, Ceviche and Cumbia 

a small portrait of this author Juan Arellano · 04:46

Peru is often known for its archaeological treasures such as Machu Picchu. Others point to its natural and ecological treasures of the Amazon Jungle or Andes Mountains. Some bloggers have taken a different course, and pick national treasures that appeal mainly to the 5 senses.

Laura of Menos Canas [es] takes advantage of the day of the pisco sour to reflect on diverse issues that in one way or another are in the limelight. Let's read some of her post, Let's drink pisco!

Hoy se celebra el día del Pisco Sour y, muchos hacemos planes que involucren esta bebida como debe ser. Esta vez, antes de partir a “piscosourlandia”, comparto algunas ideas que surgieron en una conversación con amigos cercanos. Hace algunas semanas escribía en este espacio, algunas líneas alusivas a cierto espíritu antichileno en el país. No me retracto en lo absoluto, al contrario, aprovecho el acontecimiento del día de hoy para reforzar algunos puntos muy particulares.

Si hay algo de lo que los peruanos nos hemos lamentado durante los últimos meses fue de la compra de los supermercados WONG por Cencosud. Al respecto se ha dicho mucho, no solo sobre la pertinencia de dicha compra, sino además sobre las motivaciones que pudieron subyacer a la venta; sin embargo, lo cierto es que el corazoncito peruano reclamó y, ello es lógico. Ahora bien, se ha mencionado también que tal vez si la compra la hubiera realizado una compañía que no fuera chilena, el dolorcito hubiera sido menor pues habría originado, por así decirlo, la herida en lugar de reforzarla. No exageramos cuando afirmamos que el rencor ante Chile se encuentra a flor de piel y temas delicados como el de WONG o, ahora el de la demanda peruana ante La Haya lo evidencian.

Today we celebrate the Day of the Pisco Sour and, as we should, many of us have made plans involving this drink. This time, before heading to Pisco Sour Land, I'd like to share some ideas that came out in a conversation with close friends. Right here, a few weeks ago, I wrote a few lines alluding to a certain anti-Chilean spirit in the country. I absolutely do not retract myself; on the contrary, I take advantage of today's event to reinforce specific points.

If there is something Peruvians have lamented during recent months, it was the purchase of Wong Supermarkets by Cencosud. Much has been said about this, not only about the appropriateness of that purchase; but, also about the motivation that could underlie the sale. What is clear, nonetheless, is the Peruvian heart complained and that's logical. It has been also said if the purchase would have been by a non-Chilean company, the pain would have been less since it would have just caused a wound instead of reinforcing one. We aren't exaggerating when we say the anger towards Chile is just beneath the surface. Delicate situations like Wong, or the current Peruvian case in The Hague, make that clear.

There are some very good blogs about Peruvian food, but while schatz67, in El Urbanito [es], is an expert he doesn't have a specialized blog. His is varied, and that means that once in a while he post about his culinary experiences, such as this latest post, Ceviche on biceps:

Caminé en dirección hacia el Parque Mariscal Castilla. Estaba pensando en un cebiche y me había acordado de un dato sobre una cebichería, El Limón, ubicada en Lince también. Paré en un kiosko a comprar alguna revista para leer durante el almuerzo, hay mucha gente que no entiende eso de almorzar solo y lo ve como una actividad inconcebible. Yo no me hago problemas, he vivido un buen tiempo “de a uno” y no hay soledad que no sea compensada con un material interesante para leer. Andaba hojeando la revista cuando vi un promontorio de cañas de guayaquil sobre el retiro de la acera coronado con un letrero:”Cebicheria El Pescado Loco”. Un atril con la carta además de una pizarra con tiza indicando los platos del día son la fachada de un local bastante pulcro y limpio donde había una regular cantidad de gente. “Hay gente, no debe ser malo”. Primer error y contradicción del día, sobre todo cuando la afluencia responde a un motivo extra-gastronómico.

Me ubiqué en una mesa esquinada y observé la composición del público. Oficinistas, abogados, dos o tres parejas y tres o cuatro grupos de chicas, una mayoria femenina sin lugar a dudas en un sitio casi lleno. En eso vi salir al objeto del deseo de las chicas presentes; no, no era Dayvis Dragón, tampoco una espectacular fuente de cebiche, era el mismisimo Arni Hussid con dos platos humeantes que acababan de salir de la cocina. Enfundado en un jean de diseñador y un polito verde pegado que hacia resaltar una bien trabajada musculatura el hombre es el factótum del lugar; hace las veces de dueño, tomador de pedidos, relacionista público y depositario de babas y miradas violadoras de la concurrencia femenina del lugar. De pura casualidad y sin ningun tipo de planificación había caído en la cebichería del polifacético modelo.

I was walking towards Mariscal Castilla Park and thinking about a ceviche when I remembered about this cebichería [a restaurant specializing in ceviche]. I stopped at a newspaper stand to buy a magazine to read during lunch. There are a lot of people who can't comprehend eating lunch alone and see it as something inconceivable. I don't care. I've lived a long time as “just one” and there is no loneliness that can't be fixed by something interesting to read. I was browsing through the magazine when I saw a bamboo promontory at the sidewalk's edge, topped off with a a sign: Cebichería El Pescado Loco. There was a stand with the menu, as well as a chalkboard indicating the day's specialties, facing a very clean-looking locale where there was a good amount of people. “There's people; it can't be bad.” First error and contradiction of the day, moreover when the crowd was due to a non-food related motive.

I settled into a corner table and observed the composition of the crowd. Office workers, attorneys, two or three couples, and three or four big groups of women. There certainly was a female majority in an almost-full locale. That's when I saw the object of the women's desires come out. No, it wasn't Dayvis Dragón, nor was it a spectacular plate of ceviche. It was the one and only Arni Hussid with two steaming plates just out of the kitchen. Dressed in designer jeans and a tight green tee-shirt showing off his well-worked musculature, the man was the jack-of-all-trades of the restaurant. He was owner, waiter, public relations persona, and the recipient of drooling and lewd looks by the restaurant's female public. By sheer coincidence, with no planning, I had ended up in the multi-faceted model's cebichería.

Meanwhile, Rain, of Puerto Asterix [es], writes about a subject close to many of us: music. She reflects on various popular rhythms, and others less so. I'd like to focus on what she says about Peruvian cumbia in her post Musical diversity:

Calificar a las expresiones musicales diciendo: ésta es buena, ésta es mala, sería la opción más cómoda. Lo que sucede es que hay gamas, corrientes, actitudes, circunstancias, visiones, y en esos ámbitos, la cumbia de raigambre andina y norteña que es la más popular, preserva cierta frescura en su intensidad. Hay un romanticismo declaradamente férreo que atraviesa la cumbia y la sella con emociones que originan temas superpopulares. Cuando ves a tu alrededor que la gente ama canciones como Embrujo, vas comprendiendo cómo se va desarrollando la identidad de los peruanos. Análogamente puedes comprender otras idiosincracias por sus más entrañables ritmos. Aquellas canciones que millones de personas bailan apuntan a lo que significan las modas más allá de las imposiciones de la publicidad.

Qualifying music by saying: this is good, this is bad, is the most comfortable option. What happens is there are ranges, currents, attitudes, circumstances, visions, and in those environments, cumbia with its Andean and Northern origins is the most popular and preserves a certain freshness in its intensity. There is a declaredly iron-willed romanticism piercing cumbia and searing it with emotions which create extremely popular songs. When you witness people around you loving songs like Embrujo, you begin to understand how the identity of Peruvians is developing. Analogously, you understand other idiosyncrasies by their beloved rhythms. Those songs millions of people are dancing to point to what fashion is beyond the imposition by publicity.

Translated by Alejandro Garcia.

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Syria: Free Tariq Campaign 

a small portrait of this author Yazan Badran · 00:06
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Syrian blogs are abuzz at the moment with another crack down on freedom of speech by the Syrian regime. Except, this time it's one of our own. Tariq's case took around six months to catch the attention of bloggers - six months he's still languishing in jail.

Tariq Baiasi, was surfing the internet one day, and happened to leave a comment on a public forum, criticizing the notorious security apparatus. Not long after that, on July 7th, 2007, he was arrested in his hometown of Banyas, never to be heard of again. As of today, Tariq has been in jail, without trial, for more than six months.

Razan, and a group of active bloggers, have set up a campaign website and an online petition. Please take a minute to sign the petition here. Razan has an extensive post about the issue on her blog, including an interview with activist Razan Zeitouneh:

Tariq’s online speech does not constitute a violation of the law. In fact, he actually acted on the basis of freedom, which as stated earlier, is guaranteed by the Constitution via Article 38, which states: “Every citizen has the right to express his opinion freely and openly, orally and written and in all other means of expression. He also has the right to contribute in the control process and in the constructive criticism to ensure the safety of national reconstruction.”

In her post, Razan mentions another blogger detained and forgotten in jail, Tariq Gorani.

Tariq Gorani was detained on 19-2-2006 for a year and four months before being charged with a seven years sentence verdict on 17-6-2007 for “endangering Syria's security”. His blog's name was Aldomari. “Aldomari” is originally taken from the first and the last independent Syrian newspaper that addressed and investigated the corruption of the Syrian authorities for a few months before it was shut down by the regime.

Other bloggers have been republishing the campaign links, and showing their support. Abu Kareem of Levantine Dreamhouse vents out his anger:

The Syrian regime's chokehold on its citizens' right to express themselves is unrelenting. Whether our expressions of outrage on the web really matter is highly debatable. The government knows that organized internal opposition, if present, is impotent. In addition, Syrian opposition outside is missing in action. They could care less about Western condemnations of their human rights records because they know that Western powers seem to care about the average Syrian only when it is politically expedient. The regime knows what buttons to push to get the pressure off their backs; it is a game that the Baathist regime has perfected over a span of two generations.

Annie has written about it here, and Yazan, here.

Ahmed, also said:

لأن الستة أشهر التي قضاها طارق في السجن تكفي ليصبح مهذباً ، قصير اللسان ، لا يحشر أنفه فيما لا يعنيه ! لأن هذا الاعتقال خوّفنا و أرهبنا - كمدونين و رواد انترنت - فلن نقتفي اثره ، و سنقصر ألسنتنا ، و نكف عن الثرثرة في المحرمات. و لأنّه فعلاً .. الستة أشهر .. كافية !

Because the six months that Tariq has spent in jail are enough to make him “polite”, with a “shorter tongue”, and “not poke his nose in everything”. Because this arrest has frightened and terrorized us, -as bloggers, and Internet users-, we will not go after him, we will “shorten our tongues”, and stop gossiping about taboo issues. And because… six months, are truly, ENOUGH!

 

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